Byrum
"That what doesn't kill us, makes us stronger'. This ancient saying, born in the distant past of Terra, was amongst humans a request to never give up, no matter how difficult or painful the hardships an individual or group had to face. This ancient proverb proves itself true today. Now, after 400 years, Humanity stands over the very homeworld of the species that, in an unprovoked manner, tried, and failed, to destroy us. We, the children of Terra, stand in judgement of an entire species, that research proved to be so hostile, so vile, so beyond any means of comprehension, that only one verdict is acceptable. By the power conferred to me by the Great Terran Union, the will of its citizens and the dictate of Fate itself, We, Humanity, declare the Tyrum guilty. No appeal will be accepted, nor any claim of leniency. The blood of billions stains their hands, and only this action can serve as appropriate punishment. Less than that would be to diminish not only the loss of lives, but the insurmountable sacrifices our kind had to make to overcome and recover from such terrible atrocity. The only verdict for such crime is death. Ten thousand Tyrum for one drop of our blood. This is the only acceptable price. '' ''And, by this action, vengeance is achieved, and we can finally allow the rest of the souls of billions that, to this very day, impelled us towards this moment. '' ''Our time of vengeance is upon us, and the sword shall be our instrument! We will have vengeance to our fallen, Terra shall never be harmed again! '' ''Glory to the Great Terran Union! Glory to Humanity! '' ''Terra Victor! " -Grand Admiral of The Sword of Terra, Almirant Ivanova Sadarti System Previously the home- system of the Tyrum, Byrum was destroyed by the GTU Colossus 'The Sword of Terra' on September 16, 2448. A single station was afterwards built in orbit over the shattered planet, housing the largest memorial archives in all of GTU space. Each year GTU citizens visit this location as a pilgrimage site. It is currently under Core Sector administration despite the system being located in the galactic south, far from GTU friendly space, and it is currently occupied by the Stellar Axis. Byrum Cataclysm After using the Gateways and bypassing several stations and fleets, humanity had finally made it to Byrum. Finally, they were in the same position as the Tyrum 400 years ago. At this point, the knowledge of the operation had been made public, but it was already too late for anyone to respond. And now the project that humanity had been creating for nearly a century, was revealed to be a massive super weapon, a piece of technology that dwarfed any modern warship. On September 16, 2447, a massive weapon, named 'the Sword of Terra' was positioned over Byrum, generators charging. When Grand Admiral Almirant Ivanova gave the order to fire, a spear of light was formed, burning the atmosphere in seconds, transforming buildings, animals, plants and Tyrum to ash. And as it continued, it cracked the surface, causing immense earthquakes and volcanic eruptions, boiling the seas and killing all life to the viral level. The planet consumed by convulsions, resembling a god wounded by traitorous children. The spear of light ceased, and as the fragments of continents, islands, mountains and trenches begun to drift away from one another, one thing become clear to the whole galaxy. The GTU would no longer be ignored, and its power, no longer challenged. Galactic Reaction Even before the shattered pieces of the Tyrum's homeworld had begun to stabilize, the response from across the galaxy had flooded in. On every alien world in which the GTU maintained an embassy or consulate, spontaneous mass demonstrations broke out. Within a span of days, half a dozen diplomatic compounds had been hastily evacuated before they were overrun by protesters. Other embassies were simply closed or expelled at the request of their host nation. The Sword of Terra and its accompanying escort fleet managed to return to Terran space. The Star Concord, furious that the GTU violated the Tyrum Consesus, closed their borders, an act that would be copied by nearly every other major government or alliance. Even nations that had traditionally been friendly or impartial towards the Greater Terran Union were now belligerent. Terran diplomats had of course expected such a reaction, but the consequences and uproar had far surpassed even their most pessimistic expectations. In a rare attempt to appease interstellar opinion, the GTU announced it would adopt a partial quality 'No-first-use policy', stating that the Sword of Terra would only be used against states possessing a similar type of weapon. The damage however, had already been done. Post-Cataclysm On September 16, 2448, 100 members of the Sunda Commissariat's Guard of Honor silently assembled in Victory Square in the center of Jakarta. In lieu of their ceremonial weaponry, each held a single torch. The statue they encircled was nearly as old as the Greater Terran Union itself, constructed even as ash still fell across the Earth and the survival of humanity remained tenuous. Nobody ever discovered who first tossed their black ribbon of mourning on the monument, but it was soon joined by tens of thousands of others in a mass outpouring of grief. The impromptu act grew to become tradition, and through the centuries, the statue was slowly buried beneath a black cloak of mourning, until entire generations passed by without ever seeing what lay beneath. But on the night mankind unleashed its greatest weapon and the suffering brought to Earth was finally repaid, 100 torches were cast at the statues base. In an instant, centuries of grief were burned away, and the figure of a woman, sword raised to the starlit sky, emerged. Engraved on her shield in every language was a single phrase that until now had been lost to history. "Whoever shall come to us with a sword, by the sword shall perish." Pilgrimage GTU citizens, soldiers, and politicians started a yearly tradition of visiting the destroyed remains of Byrum. It is said that every citizens goal is to undergo the pilgrimage at least once in their life. A station was built in orbit of the once destroyed planet, housing the largest memorial archives in all of GTU space. Countless holo-obelisks project the names of GTU civilians that have lost their lives to the Tyrum threat, as well as those that died to protect the freedoms of every GTU inhabitant. There is a special holo-obelisk, Spire of the Unsung Heroes, that is dedicated to the countless fallen which names remain unknown to this day. But the Greater Terran Union will never forget those who brought them to the stars. "Ad astra per aspera!" Minor credit This article had the old Byrum Cataclysm merge with it, even though many things were changed when it was merge, it would not have been so seamless if not for the original creator of the old article, so big thanks to the original creator.